Chapter 218: Run Rabbit, Run!All the Hound trainers had been present at the archery lesson, so I knew none were hiding in the woods. As soon as I was out of sight of the others, I sent my bow, arrows, sword, and Hound pack into my space. The lighter I was, the faster I could move. If I remained free until sunset, I would be the winner. At least, that is what I assumed, as we always ended our hunts of the Hounds then, even if we didn’t find them.We had spent the last few days tracking and hunting our Hound instructors, so I was very familiar with the terrain. Two minutes was not a lot of time to gain a lead on the others. Normally, the Hounds were given fifteen minutes, or they left in the middle of a lesson to enter the woods to set false trails, traps, and hide. Konstantin only giving me two minutes was just Konstantin being Konstantin.As I ran, I intentionally left a trail, stepping on blood grass, leaving prints, and disturbing the leaves. I was faster than everyone, and I had a destination in mind. Konstantin’s warning that this was going to happen eventually kept me on the lookout for paths and routes.To my right was the hill that led up to the bluff where the castle resided, and to my left were the dense woods. As I ran, I spooked two deer and paused in my long stride. After getting lesson after lesson on the horrors of the world, racing recklessly alone through the woods was probably not very wise.My senses went into overdrive, searching for threats while my mind worked on my plan. One of the pups, Val, was a cheater. His spell form could divine the direction of an object that he had touched. It did not work on people, only objects, and had a range of about one mile. I hoped that he was trying futilely to find my bow or sword and cursing up a storm, thinking I was out of his range. Those (...)